Grand Theft Auto IV and Wii Fit have scored headlines for shifting public opinions about videogames by deftly tackling the respective subjects that inspired them: crime and fitness. Now comes Metal Gear Solid 4 ($60; konami.com), whose major themes derive from a most unlikely place: President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s 1961 farewell address warning against the dangers of the military-industrial complex.

Well before last October’s hearings into possible abuses by real-world contractors like Blackwater, game designers became fascinated with the character of the hired gun, including such pro-mercenary titles as Raven Software’s Soldier of Fortune (2000) and Pandemic’s Mercenaries (2005). The appeal is perhaps obvious, but psychologically telling: placing you in the role of a merc gives you access to all the cool ordnance you’d find in the glut of Army games out there, but without having to deal with the annoying hierarchical command structure that comes with the armed forces.

MGS 4 isn’t the only game looking skeptically at the post-9/11 corporatization of military functions—clips and quotes from Eisenhower’s 1961 speech were prominently featured in the trailers for both Army of Two ($60; ea.com) and Cipher Complex (not yet released; ciphercomplex.com)—but it’s by far the most thoughtful, even if its premise is not particularly original. Yes, a villain from the previous games turns up in the Middle East with yet another plan for global domination and, yes, only your lone hero—the prematurely aging Solid Snake—can stop him. But creator Hideo Kojima clearly has more on his mind than a repeat of the hide-seek-and-shoot mechanics that have made him the master of the genre he calls “tactical stealth action,” which emphasizes patience and strategy over the simple pleasures of run-and-gun.